Chapter 188: Han Songs from All Sides, Zhang Xun Surrenders As for Zhang Xun, ever since he was captured by Liu Bei in the past, there has been a thorn in his heart. After all, he was captured on the battlefield and then released by Liu Bei, during which he committed some disloyal acts. Although he returned to Yuan Shu's army and was still valued, he was always worried that his past affairs in Xuzhou would be discovered. Therefore, after sending Qiao Rui's family away, he lived a very tormenting life. He was afraid that his capture would be discovered someday and Yuan Shu would hold him accountable. But what he didn't expect was that before he was held accountable, Yuan Shu began to go downhill. Since May last year, Yuan Shu's power has been declining day by day. Under such circumstances, Yuan Shu was naturally overwhelmed and had no time to pursue last year's war. But seeing Yuan Shu's decline, Zhang Xun felt very unhappy. Because no matter how you think about it, he had a share of the credit for Liu Bei's rise.

After all, if he hadn't helped Liu Bei to stabilize his family, Qiao Rui would not have been able to devote himself to Liu Bei's army with peace of mind. Without Qiao Rui, it would have been difficult for Liu Bei to capture Xiang County without bloodshed. Without taking Xiang County, Liu Bei naturally could not take over the entire Pei State, and naturally would not have been able to lead his army south to where he is today. So sometimes he would think about a question: was it because of his momentary cowardly behavior that led to Yuan Shu's current situation? With this idea in mind, he has been working hard to help Yuan Shu reverse the decline. But he didn't expect that one year later, he would meet Liu Bei again, and Liu Bei would bring up the past events again. This put him in a dilemma! On the one hand, there was the favor Liu Bei showed him, and on the other hand, there was the trust Yuan Shu had in him. If it were someone else, they would probably open the city and surrender at this moment in exchange for wealth and glory. But he couldn't do that, because he started out by following Yuan Shu and has risen all the way to become a general today! Yuan Shu had let down many people, but the only person he was worthy of was Zhang Xun! No matter how many times he was defeated, Yuan Shu would always choose him as the commander whenever he divided his troops. Theoretically, he should be loyal to the Lord no matter what. But the problem lies here. The current situation is that Liu Bei has already taken control of the situation. Even if he resists, he won’t be able to hold out for long! If he surrenders now, it will be icing on the cake for Liu Bei and will not affect the overall situation. But if he does not surrender and follows Yuan Shu, he will be doomed sooner or later. Liu Bei was a kind and righteous man, so he would not treat his family badly. But he cannot treat others unkindly just because they are kind. It has always been difficult to be both loyal and righteous since ancient times. With this series of thoughts, even a veteran like Zhang Xun didn't know what to do! However, while he was still hesitating, Yan Xiang could not care less. As soon as he entered the city, he asked repeatedly: "I see that you and Liu Bei had no previous friendship, so why are you acting like this towards him today?" When Zhang Xun saw Yan Xiang coming to ask questions, he said with a sad face: "Sir, please don't ask any more questions. Just rest assured, I will definitely not open the city to surrender!" Seeing Zhang Xun like this, Yan Xiang knew that things would be difficult for him.

If it were in the past, he would probably just stop asking questions, but now Yuan Shu only has this one city. How could he trust Zhang Xun when he was like this? While thinking, he softened his voice and said earnestly: "I know that the general is a loyal and righteous man, but now that there are powerful enemies outside, we are the only ones in charge of the city." "If the general does not tell the truth, it is like not asking. How can the soldiers in the city not be worried?" "As a general, I believe you know that there are some things that are difficult to talk about. If I can understand them, I will help you solve your doubts." "If I can't solve it, I won't tell anyone. The current situation is like this. We are the only two trapped here. If the city falls, we will live and die together. What else do you have to worry about, General?" Hearing Yan Xiang's words, Zhang Xun thought that Yan Xiang was an upright man and not the kind of person who would just pass on messages, so he simply told him about his defeat and capture in Xuzhou. At last, he sighed to Yan Xiang and said bitterly: "Speaking of this matter, it was me who was disloyal to Lord Yuan first. It was my fault." "But Liu Bei and I have a debt of gratitude. Now I have to choose between loyalty and righteousness. I really don't know what to do!" When Yan Xiang heard his words, he sighed and was unable to say a word. He thought that there was some kind of transfer of interests between Liu Bei and Zhang Xun, but now it seems that he had misunderstood! The move of releasing Zhang Xun was a hidden move that Qin Zhen had laid long ago. It was not that Liu Bei showed mercy, but Qin Zhen valued Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui and valued gratitude, so he let Zhang Xun back as a backup. If Liu Bei was defeated, Zhang Xun would spare Liu Bei out of gratitude. If Liu Bei wins, Zhang Xun, as a general under Yuan Shu, will be useful sooner or later! The current situation is that Qin Zhen has set up the chess game and played this hidden piece. If Zhang Xun had not told him, he would probably not have known that there was such a hidden danger around Yuan Shu until the city was broken. Thinking of how powerful Liu Bei had become, Yan Xiang sighed: "This is not the general's fault, but the result of Qin Zhen's planning." "It is just one wrong step, and then there are all the wrong steps. This person's plan is so secretive, it is really shocking." "With his plan, how can we resist him?" Zhang Xun felt better after hearing his words of comfort, and asked hurriedly: "Sir, please don't say that. Although Qin Zhen has the ability to plan, you also have the talent to plan the army." "I wonder, sir, how should I respond?" Upon hearing this, Yan Xiang shook his head and sighed: "This is the general's decision. How can I interfere?" "But tell the general to think about Lord Yuan and not surrender easily!" In fact, he is powerless to change the current situation. Liu Bei's army arrived so quickly, far beyond their expectations.

Judging from the fact that Qin Zhen deliberately kept this move in mind, their attempt to seize the State of Chen was probably part of the enemy's plan. If Qin Zhen had any intentional plan, Yuan Shu would probably be in great danger. In addition, Yuan Shu and his family were all captured by Liu Bei, so whether to surrender or not now really depends on Zhang Xun's decision. He was just a scholar. If Zhang Xun really wanted to surrender, he naturally could not stop him. Furthermore, if Yuan Shu was a wise leader who knew how to use people, he would definitely try to persuade him to do so. But considering Yuan Shu's condition, what reason did he have to persuade Zhang Xun to surrender? After thinking about this and trying to persuade him a little, he stopped trying, as if he had lost his last bit of strength. Zhang Xun sighed again when he saw him like this. He originally thought that Yan Xiang still had some resistance in his heart and wanted Yan Xiang to persuade him, but he didn't expect that Yan Xiang was so depressed now. Now all the pressure is on him, what choice should he make? Thinking of this, he simply said to Yan Xiang: "Well, thank you for your guidance, sir. Let me think about it for a while." After saying this, he let Yan Xiang leave on his own and stayed alone in the mansion to ponder. He wanted to open the city and surrender, but his conscience couldn't let him go. He was struggling with this all the way until night. Then he heard from his subordinates that Liu Bei's army was outside trying to persuade him to surrender! After hearing the letter, Zhang Xun felt a severe headache and could not relieve himself. He was not afraid of Liu Bei's army attacking the city, but he was afraid of Liu Bei's army doing this! Most of the new recruits in their city were forcibly brought here by Yuan Shu and have no fighting power at all. How can the new soldiers resist Liu Bei's persuasion to surrender? If this continues, the city will fall in less than three days. In desperation, he had to order his men to guard the city strictly, and he drank alone in the mansion. Before he knew it, it was three o'clock in the morning. In a daze, he suddenly heard a burst of singing from the city. It is one of the "Eighteen Songs of the Han Dynasty", called "Battle in the South of the City", which means: War in the south of the city, dead in the north of Guo, and the wild dead can be eaten without being buried. Say to me: Be a guest and be proud! The wild death is forgiven and not buried, can the carrion go and escape? The water roars, the cattails and reeds are dark; the brave riders die in battle, the slow horses wander and neigh. Liang Zhushi, why is it south?Why North? How can He millet be eaten without your lord?Would you like to be a loyal minister? Thinking of a good minister, a good minister is truly worth thinking of; going out to attack in the morning, and returning at night! This song was composed in the Western Han Dynasty. It was written by frontier soldiers who were stationed on the border all year round. The song is tragic and sad. The song has only one theme, which is anti-war! Under the cover of night, a familiar song sounded, and Zhang Xun couldn't help but sing along, but he felt more and more sad in his heart, and he had no desire to resist. But at this moment, he suddenly heard a wailing sound, and the next second he heard a burst of crying coming from outside the mansion. When Zhang Xun heard the sound, he was startled and quickly came to his senses. After listening carefully, he felt a chill all over his body. Where does such a tragic song come from in the middle of the night? The morale of the soldiers in the city was already low. If they heard such songs, their morale might be directly weakened, resulting in large-scale desertions. He immediately stood up and shouted: "Come here, come here, who is singing outside?"

As soon as he shouted, a soldier walked into the palace and shouted: "General, this is not the sound coming from inside the city, but from the enemy outside the city!" These soldiers had no idea what was going on, but when Zhang Xun heard this, four words suddenly popped up in his mind - surrounded by enemies on all sides! As a Han citizen, he naturally knew the strategy that Emperor Gaozu used to defeat Xiang Yu. But he didn't expect that Liu Bei would use the same strategy on him! Zhang Xun's heart tightened at that moment, and he quickly stood up and stumbled forward and said: "It's a disaster! Quickly prepare your horses, I want to go up to the city to see the situation!" Upon hearing this, the soldier hurriedly went out to prepare the horse, and soon helped Zhang Xun onto the horse. As we walked out of the palace, we heard the sound of crying and sobbing everywhere in the city. The more Zhang Xun listened, the more creepy he found it. He hurried toward the city wall and saw that the outside of the city was already full of soldiers. In the distance, a group of civilians were shouting towards the inside of the city. Some were calling their own children, while others were calling their friends. A wave of calls could be heard. The soldiers on the city wall had already been shaken. Regardless of whether they had relatives or not, they all stayed on the city wall and shouted outside. In these turbulent times, there are many separations of life and death. Under the influence of emotions, even those who have no relatives or friends will be moved and sad when they see this. However, the more moving the scene was, the more terrified Zhang Xun was. If the current situation continues to develop, it will cause an uprising in the city. For a moment, he threw all his thoughts aside and shouted hurriedly: "Beat the drum, beat the drum, beat the drum quickly to cover up the singing!" But he was a step too late to react. Just as he gave the order, he heard shouting from the west. Then a soldier rode his horse and shouted: "General, the commander of the west gate has opened the city gate and surrendered to Liu Bei!" As the voice came, Zhang Xun was stunned on the spot. The scene around him fell silent for a moment, and the soldiers looked at each other. But only a moment later, one of them threw his weapon to the ground and shouted: "I quit. I'm going to find my mother!" As soon as this man moved, the surrounding soldiers put down their weapons. They called their friends and went in groups of three or five, heading down the city. When Zhang Xun's personal guards saw this, they drew their swords and shouted: "The general is here, anyone who surrenders to the enemy will be killed!" As soon as he spoke, the soldiers stopped moving. The villagers who were forcibly dragged here were filled with fear and dared not move. But some of the veteran soldiers looked fierce and unfriendly when they saw this. When the personal guard saw this, he took a step back with some fear. Zhang Xun looked at the situation and shook his head and sighed: "Forget it, the situation has come to this, what can we do?"

As he said this, he looked out of the city. Perhaps his dilemmatic thoughts were just wishful thinking. Given the current situation, he has to surrender whether he wants to or not. It's not that he can save the situation just because he is unwilling to surrender. With this thought in mind, he turned around and shouted: "Come here, pass on my military order, put down your weapons, and do not resist!" "Open the city gate with me and welcome Liu Mu into the city!" With such a shout, the surrounding soldiers cheered and rushed towards the city. Seeing the soldiers like this, Zhang Xun naturally felt complicated. Whenever someone surrendered, there should at least be some people who resisted. But now that he has surrendered, the soldiers are cheering, which shows that Yuan Shu is unpopular! People's hearts are with Liu, so what can it do even if Xiang Yu is reborn? After thinking for a while, he stopped hesitating and walked towards the city. (End of this chapter)